Tag: paleo lifestyle

What’s The “Paleo Diet”?

Paleo is actually the short form of Paleolithic. It’s the era before the agricultural age and ended about 10000 years ago. Paleo diet rules dictate the plan must be made up of foods only available to the human during the Paleolithic age, which means no dairy products, processed oils, grains, refined sugar or legumes. Now that you have some idea what this diet is let’s just move along to the rules of forming a personal plan.

14 Ways of the Paleo Lifestyle

A Paleo plan must include high fat rate, moderate animal protein and preferably low carbohydrate.

Include as much saturated fat as possible.

Animal protein must include red meat, eggs, poultry, organs (like heart and liver) and especially wild caught fish. It’s fine if the cuts are fatty. Cooking WITH the bones is advisable.

Generously eat raw or cooked fresh or frozen vegetables and have them with fat. For non-toxic carbohydrates include sweet potatoes and such starchy vegetables.

Keep your fruits and nuts consumption between low and moderate since they’re great sources of antioxidants and Omega-3. BUT, if you have regular digestive problem or some kind of autoimmune disease, avoid them completely.

In no way should your diet contain legumes or cereal grains. This list includes wheat, barley, corn, soy, kidney or navy beans, rye, oats, brown rice, peanuts and anything else that you can think of.

Erase all kinds of hydrogenated, partly-hydrogenated and vegetable oils from your eating habit. You can still use avocado and olive oil but only as salad dressings or by drizzling them over food.

One of the most disliked Paleo diet rules is eliminating added sugar because this means quitting all kinds of soft drinks, fruit juices and even packaged sweets. Best to avoid sugar completely.

As a rule, dairy products are prohibited from the plan ALTHOUGH, you could add in butter and MAYBE heavy cream as well. For those who just can’t live without dairy, it has to be raw, full-fat and fermented.

The Paleo diet rules are put together to help you bring balance within your body by balancing body fats, “fertilizing” your brain and making your muscles more powerful.

Eat when your stomach tells you, no need to abide by the “3-meals-a-day” rule. Doesn’t matter if you miss a meal or two. Eat only if you’re hungry. It’s hard to imagine cave-people maintaining a strict meal routine.

Try reducing all kinds of external sources of stress. Try going to bed as early as possible and get at least 8 hours of sleep at night. Practice waking up without any alarm clock.

If you have lengthy cardio exercises included in your daily routine, replace them with short and intense workouts (like sprinting). And do not work out more than 2/3 times a week.

You don’t need to take multivitamins or some other similar supplements but you do need vitamin D, magnesium, vitamin K2 and iodine. Seaweeds are great for this purpose.

The last rule could sound like a joke but it isn’t. Go outside and play, laugh and run. You need the open air and the sun. Just do whatever you want to as long as you save some time to spend outside.

The Paleo diet rules are put together to help you bring balance within your body by balancing body fats, “fertilizing” your brain and making your muscles more powerful. If you’re going the opposite direction then you’re probably not following it right. Go the right way and be healthy as you should be.

If you’ve ever considered the Paleo diet, then you may be wondering about the specifics and benefits. The Paleo diet is simply following the same dietary habits as people from the Paleolithic period. In this hunter-gatherer tribe model, you wouldn’t have access to many of the foods available today. While this diet changest several of the ways that you eat, you’re going to notice that it doesn’t contain any processed foods or added sugars.
The benefits of this diet are huge and while you can use Paleo for weight loss, it’s primarily designed to improve your overall health and well-being. The Paleo diet provides meals that are full of nutrients, protein, and healthy fat sources. Instead of having to process harmful chemicals and other food additives, you have the freedom to enjoy meals where every food contributes to you health. With this diet, people notice that they feel more energized throughout the day and don’t experience the same feelings of tiredness and fatigue from their normal diets. You’ll also be meeting more of your nutrient needs through food rather than having to turn to supplements or additives.
Paleo Shopping List
When you’re trying to create a Paleo shopping list, there are a few main food groups that should be on your list. Look at this list for a few examples
Meats: Chicken, Salmon, Beef
Fruits: Avocado, Apples, Figs
Vegetables: Broccoli, Green Beans, Peppers
Nuts/Seeds: Flaxseed, Brazil nuts, Pecans
Oils: Coconut oil, Flaxseed oil
Beverages: Coconut water, Almond milk

These are just a few of the potential foods on your Paleo shopping list, but this list is certainly not exclusive. You may notice that the foods that comprise your shopping list are whole foods. They aren’t processed foods and nothing is added to them or taken away. Also, the foods on this list should be organic and free range if possible to find. You’re going to get more nutrients and stick to the preferred Paleo diet if you stick to these tips when making up your own shopping list.

Most of the foods that you enjoy have a Paleo friendly version so you don’t have to deprive yourself of your favorite dishes. They’re probably changed only by a little bit.

Cooking with the Paleo Diet
Cooking on the Paleo diet can stump some people, but it’s actually fairly easy when you get the hang of it. If you’re just starting out, look up recipes or find a Paleo cookbook to give you some ideas. Most of the foods that you enjoy have a Paleo friendly version so you don’t have to deprive yourself of your favorite dishes. They’re probably changed only by a little bit. For example, a Paleo ground beef recipe for pizza may use ground beef as the base of the pie instead of the traditional crust. Other Paleo ground beef recipes can include hamburgers, meatballs and a huge other range of uses. No matter what food dish you enjoy, you will still be able to have it on the Paleo diet although expect to see some changes.

These are some of the basic pointers to give you an idea of what the Paleo diet is and how it can help you to build a healthier lifestyle. It can take some getting used to at first, so you may want to transition slowly as you learn more about it, but expect to start seeing significant changes in just a few weeks!